The Great Cable Debate

[happy ears]

What, I’m not allowed to make my own power cords. Oops, don’t tell anyone but in my last job I must have made up 10 miles of power cords over thirteen years. Also, do my own wiring in my house when required, fans, lights etc. Ran a dedicated power cable and breaker for my stereo, this was required as the previous circuit was improperly done. Washing machine on same circuit as recreation (music) room plugs, so I fixed both of them. Had great fun cutting the hole in the drywall for the TV cable and power, then noticed how terrible the drywall job was, so I took all the drywall off one wall. My friend laughed and said another small job turned into a large one. Hey, at least one wall looks like it was done by a top notch professional. Paid the big bucks and bought the proper rated wire, figured that there must be a reason for all those silly numbers, letters and codes. You can buy some pretty descent how to books as well as code books written for those without proper papers. I will put my work up against the pros but I will admit that I am not as fast and efficient as they are. I thought coaxial cable was for my TV signal that’s what I used it for. You know if you want shielded power cords you can buy it off the roll from electrical supply company, ask and you will be rewarded.

Someone once told me all electronics parts have smoke in them and once you let the smoke out they do not work. If this is true, wires most have enormous quantity of smoke in them. I do not recommend that everyone do there own electrical work, if you do not understand hire a pro.


Have A Great Day

[skeptic]

You assume the responsibility for the consequences of your actions. If you make your own power cords, your product is no longer UL listed. If I come to your house amd I am injured because I touched your defective power cord, got a shock, and had to go to the hospital, your insurance won't cover you.

You can legally do electrical work on your own home by technically, you are required to request an inspection by the town's building department to be sure you met the electrical code. Most people don't. Again, if I get hurt at your house because of something I did which should have been perfectly safe and wasn't due to your negligance, your insurance company will not compensate you and when I sue you, I might just wind up owning your house.

[happy ears]

Where I live even it is inspected and approved by the city certified electrican that they employed the insurance will be voided. However the plugs and switches installed by an electrican that says "FOR COPPER USE ONLY" installed on a house that is wired with Aluminum they will only cover you if you did not know. Because I realize that this is incorrect I will be held responsible since I did not have an approved electrican correct this problem. Now I will be honest as my house was used I have no proof that a professional made this error. However the lady down the road that bought her house new and has never touched the electrical system was amased that I found this even with a house inspection. This was easy, hot boxes to the touch and she replied Oh I thought that was normal, some people do not know. Hopefully, she paid someone with the correct qualifications to correct the same problem. The Provincial goverment where I live told me in writing that Aluminum wire has never been used for power, an outright lie. They are trying to cover their butts. Aluminum wire is safe but requires a higher standard of workmanship, it will not allow you to bend the ends one way and the rebend the stripped ends, copper is much more forgiving. Because of workmanship issues Aluminum wire was removed from the electrical code for house and other uses in Canada. We only started using Al wire when the price of copper wire became much more expensive.

I do understand the responsibilities that doing your own work brings. But unlike our politicians I stand behind my work. I agree that those that are not experienced or do not understand should hire a professional. You will be allowed to visit as long as you do not chew on power or extention cords that you see in my house. As well do not take a bath holding the end of a extention cord plugged in. I find it hard to believe what some people have achieved, listening to an AC radio while having a bath is fine. But people have the radio sitting on the tub is very dangerous. If there was a list of every stupid thing someone did to get zapped by power it would be long and you would be forced to say how stupid are some people.

[skeptic]

I do understand the responsibilities that doing your own work brings.

In the United States, a highly litigious society, when a licensed electrician wires a house, manufactures a power cord, or does ANY kind of electrical work, the state acknowledges that he has been trained as an apprentice, passed an exam, and is highly skilled in his field and so awards him the right to be a journeyman. He must take a course every three years when the electrical code changes to be certain he is aware of the current laws. He has been trained to be alert for electrical hazards he encounters in the course of doing his work and avoid creating new ones. If he notices that there is a hazard such as an electrical outlet that is hot to the touch, he will alert the owner and recommend that he or another electrician make repairs to correct the problem regardless of how it was caused. The sole purpose of the National Electrical Code in The United States is to assure electrical safety.

When I or anyone else enters a home, a place of business, or any public accomodation, I have a right to expect that all electrical installations and appliances are in good repair and are safe for normal use. That doesn't mean putting a table radio or a lamp on the ledge of a bathtub filled with water so that it might fall in and electrocute someone. It does mean that if I come in contact with a wire, insert or remove a wall plug, touch the cabinet of an audio amplifier, I will not get shocked or electrocuted because someone jury rigged a power cord with coax or defeated the safety ground of a metal chasis by installing ferrite beads on the ground wire in the mistaken belief that it would improve the sound of his stereo system. It means that if I fall asleep on your sofa, I will not be killed in a fire because an electrical outlet was overloaded and someone put a penny in a fuse box to avoid the nusiance of a fuse blowing or used the wrong wire which was overloaded to install a new outlet.

I don't know what codes exist in Canada but they might be similar to those in most of the US (some places like New York City have their own even stricter electrical codes than the National Electrical Code.) In other countries, they are invariably much laxer in my experience. In the US, were someone who cannot demonstrate their legal qualifications to take it upon himself to do their own work as you put it, they assume all of the financial responsibility for the consequences if their work is inadequate and results in damage to property, injury, or death. Now you know.

[happy ears]

To my understanding electrical codes in Canada are very similar to those in the US. Do not know if they take upgrading exams on a regular basis. I do however agree in codes and in there enforcement, however enforcement is a key word. Now people that remove grounds always make me wonder, why would they do this. Using cables that where designed for a different purpose, coaxial cable wire for power cords. Me thinks I do not want to visit their place. Yes I agree use the proper devise for which it was designed for, I do give credit to people that have the expertise and knowledge in there chosen field. When I need there advise I have no question about hiring them. Came across a piece of rental equipment once that had been modified, just a minor amount of voltage to the case, only 60 volts AC. Damn that was an eye opener, boy was I pissed off and they tried to convince me that it had CSA approved. Never used their equipment again and never will.

Alert is another key word. I have come across educated people that make me wonder. While in the Canadian Military I had a solder that supposedly had two Master Degrees, in eight years he never passed one of my demolition safety precaution tests. It was not my teaching ability because those that I had taught a year early passed the same test without notice. People said that he took basket weaving, however an expert in basking weaving would do better. God, did this man scare me when he was on any of my job sites, there was no job that I could give him that would not result in danger to my troops. If we ever had to go to war we would have been forced to remove him.

Education is not an indication of true intelligence, it is indication of knowledge. Someone with post secondary education that has succeeded in acquiring a diploma or degree has been trained and educated in that particular field. When asked should someone get post secondary education I always say yes, be it a trade, degree or diploma. However education is not a guarantee of employment it is only a stepping stone. Once ran into someone from Newfoundland that had I believe had a grade three education, he could not write read or spell. With these limitations on him, he was forced to memorize everything I taught him. I was truly amazed when I learned about this and even more important convinced him to upgrade his education.

To experiment is fine, to disregard known information and knowledge is different. Changing the electrical codes are unwise and should not be done, that’s why I buy books and pay for courses. Just wish I could say that I never have made a mistake or only made a couple. Ha, that is not going to happen in my lifetime for myself or anyone else. It is safe to come over my house, just don’t step on the cats tail he is getting pretty big. I have never owned an animal that has destroyed any of my belongings, if they did the could have a short life.

Have A great day